On the floor of the Senate Wednesday night, Senator Dick Durbin accused Senator Tim Scott of offering a “token” police reform bill for the Republicans. Dick Durbin has once again proven himself to be a crass partisan. Tim Scott has once again proven himself to be a class act.

With the police murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, and the more murky situation with the death of Rayshard Brooks, the reformation of law enforcement is the hot topic for the Legislative Branch of our government. The Democrats in the House and the Republicans in the Senate, led by Senator Tim Scott, have introduced dueling bills. This morning, the Judiciary Committee moved the Democrats’ bill forward.

Now you would think that will all Americans, except the #DefundThePolice wokerati, agreeing that law enforcement needs to be reformed, our Legislative Branch would try to find a middle ground and be`statesmen and women. You would be delusional. The Democrats hate Orange Man Bad, Tim Scott because he is a black Republican, and all of us to boot.

The two bills are very different. If you want to see how different they are, The Hill has a very concise list here. Vigorous debate should give us the right answer. The Democrats don’t know how to debate. The Democrats can only slur and demean.

Enter the appropriately named “Dick” Durbin. The New York Post reported:

In a speech on the Senate floor Wednesday, Durbin of Illinois said this was a “historic moment” amid the nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.

“Let’s not do something that is a token, half-hearted approach. Let’s focus instead on making a change that will make a difference in the future of America,” he said.

Two things here. Dick Durbin has been a United States Senator for 23 years. He knows that every word he says is important. The word “token” was not a mistake. It was intentional. Also, Democrats always accuse Republicans of using “dog whistles”. Democrats don’t bother with a dog whistle. They use a megaphone. Durbin was sending a message to Senator Scott, “Stay in your place.” And, also Scott is a “token” to Durbin because Scott is the only black Republican Senator. Democrats have double the black Senators; they have two.

The junior Senator from South Carolina has made his own run-ins with the police in the District of Columbia clear. In July of 2017, he gave a speech on the subject on the Senate floor:

Scott revealed that he has been stopped seven times in the course of one year as an elected official. “Was I speeding sometimes? Sure. But the vast majority of the time I was pulled over for driving a new car in the wrong neighborhood or something else just as trivial.”

He described several encounters with police, including one where he was stopped because the officer suspected his car was stolen. He described a similar incident that happened to his brother, a command sergeant major in the U.S. Army. And he told the story of a staffer who was “pulled over so many times here in D.C. for absolutely no reason other than driving a nice car.” The staffer eventually traded in his Chrysler for a “more obscure form of transportation” because “he was tired of being targeted.”

“I do not know many African-American men who do not have a very similar story to tell no matter their profession. No matter their income, no matter their disposition in life,” he said.

I don’t know about you, but I haven’t been stopped seven times in my life, let alone one year. So, if I were “Dick” Durbin, I wouldn’t be lecturing Senator Scott about police reform. Interestingly, and I have tried to contact him about it, Scott has never mentioned being stopped by South Carolina police.

Here is the video of Senator Scott responding to Senator Durbin:

Yes, on the fifth anniversary of the slaughter at Emanuel AME Church where nine people were murdered after praying with their murderer, Senator Durbin used the word token. It should hurt our nation’s soul. Mr. Scott is a gentleman. I would have called Durbin out. Durbin did apologize that he was misunderstood. Classic.

Unless you are talking about a game piece, the word token is a slur. We should thank God for Senator Scott and pray for more like him.

Featured Image: Senator Tim Scott Official Portrait by Renee Bouchard/Public Domain